2002-10-01 04:00:00 PDT Atlanta -- The challenge is so simple to understand but so frightening to contemplate.

For the Giants to win their best-of-five National League Division Series against the Atlanta Braves, which begins Wednesday afternoon at Turner Field, they must neutralize two of the best pitchers in the history of the sport.

When Giants hitters step into the box against Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux, Atlanta's starters for Games 1 and 2, they will be staring at two visages that will someday grace plaques in Cooperstown. They are the embodiment of postseason baseball over the past decade, even if each owns just one World Series championship ring.

Barry Bonds understands the barbed-wire fence that Glavine and Maddux represent for teams wishing to play into late October.

"It's unfortunate that a lot of attention has been drawn away from those two. You have Alex Rodriguez and the things that I've done the last couple of years,

and Curt Schilling has put it together the last few years. But what those two have accomplished over the last decade for the Braves is phenomenal, and I don't understand why people don't recognize it."

It's simple, really.

Like Bonds, Maddux and Glavine have failed to meet postseason expectations. Yes, they have won a championship, but only one, even though Atlanta has appeared in every postseason since 1991.

Both have losing records in the playoffs and World Series, Maddux 10-11 and Glavine 12-13, but with respective ERAs of 3.24 and 2.97. They excel at their jobs but are not always rewarded with victories. Though each certainly has had dark days on the mound in the playoffs, the Braves' well-deserved reputation as postseason stumblers can't be laid at their spikes.

They are tough nuts to crack in October, especially in the first round, when they might pitch four of the five games. It is no accident that, though they often lose in the National League Championship Series, the Braves are 6-1 in seven Division Series, a daunting success rate for the Giants to ponder.

"They have a lot of playoff experience and they don't make mistakes that give teams chances," said Houston center fielder Lance Berkman, whose Astros have played the Washington Generals to the Braves' Harlem Globetrotters three times in Division Series.

"I think Maddux and Glavine both have a year's worth of postseason experience over the course of their careers. Anytime you've got a No. 1 and a No. 2 starter with experience like that, they usually don't make mistakes. They usually pitch good ballgames and they've always been a very balanced team.

I think they have one of the best managers in the game, and in a short series,

that makes them tough."

The Braves are also smart enough not to let Bonds beat them. It's not a given that they will walk him every time, but the Giants understand that to win this series, the rest of the offense will have to drive in runs.

"There's always somebody who kicks your tail in, and very rarely is it the big guy who does it," Bonds said. "You can go back to history. If you guys have any clue in history, you'll see."

Said second baseman Jeff Kent: "The playoffs are so much different than the regular season. One play, one pitch, one hit makes a difference in the playoffs. Whoever gets that hit is not always going to be the best guy. We've played well as a team, which is so crucial in the playoffs."

For the Giants to beat Atlanta, their starters have to keep them in the games, a hallmark of their 2002 team. The odds appear long, given that Glavine and Maddux together have pitched 370 postseason innings, and the Giants' first two starters, Russ Ortiz and Kirk Rueter, have 16 2/3.

Oh, has anyone mentioned that Game 3 starter Kevin Millwood won 18 games this season?

Nevertheless, the Giants expressed faith in their pitching staff, which finished second in the league to the Braves' unit in ERA.

"I think that our pitchers have taken us this far, and I'm sure they're going to continue to take us even farther. It's a matter of just doing what we've been doing for the last month," said outfielder Reggie Sanders, whose Diamondbacks beat the Braves in last year's NLCS.

"I think this team, because of the experience that we have, the veteran players, it's kind of similar to the Diamondbacks," he said, conveniently omitting the fact that he fought behind Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling.

Retired Giants general manager Spec Richardson watches a lot of Braves baseball, at Turner Field and from his home just south of Atlanta, "an hour and 15 minutes away," he said, "unless there's a lot of state troopers around."

While visiting Pacific Bell Park last weekend, Richardson said he believes Bobby Cox deserves the Manager of the Year award for shepherding the Braves to the 2002 NL East title with the talent he has.

"He's got to be using mirrors to do what he's doing," Richardson said. "The pitching is there and the bullpen is there. It's just a matter of how they're going to score the runs."

In three games at Atlanta in August, the Giants allowed a total of six runs,

but they did not leave town with a winning series. They beat Maddux 7-2, lost to Glavine 1-0 and tied the finale 3-3, which ultimately was suspended by rain.

The Giants' ability to play the Braves tough at Turner Field has to generate confidence going to this series. Still, confidence does not translate into performance. To win this series, the Giants will have to outfox two of the best pitchers ever.

This time of year, it always comes down to Glavine and Maddux.

"Those aren't rinky-dink pitchers you're going against," Bonds said. "We have to play at our best, because to me those guys over there are the best. That's the just the bottom line."